Kasie Pruden-Rivera pleaded no contest to embezzling more than $400,000 from her disabled 9-year-old son's estate and could face up to 20 years in prison, WWL-TV reported.
Haiden Rivera suffered birth trauma that caused permanent brain damage, cerebral palsy and other health problems.
Cerebral palsy is a disability of the brain linked to problems in pregnancy or birth.
As a result, the 31-year-old Michigan mother received nearly $650,000 on behalf of her son as part of a settlement but allegedly spent more than half of that for personal use.
The case first came to light in November, when The Lansing State Journal reported that Pruden-Rivera was being sued over the missing money.
She and her former soldier husband Higinio Rivera sued the Army after their son was born with trauma and eventually reached a settlement that placed more than $3 million into a reversionary trust for Haiden Rivera's medical care and allocated $550,000 to pay for the boy's living expenses.
Kasie Pruden-Rivera was placed in charge of the funds but she spent it instead of depositing it in a restricted account.
Meanwhile, Pruden-Rivera's divorce from her husband was finalized recently and she received custody of Haiden Rivera and the couple's other son.
Pruden-Rivera reportedly received $650,000 on behalf of her son but of that amount, $240,000 was spent buying a house that is owned by Haiden Rivera's estate and the rest is missing, The Miami Herald reported.
"The rest of the money is unaccounted for and nobody can get her to call them back," said Eaton County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Adam Simon, according to WWL-TV.
Pruden-Rivera pleaded no contest to the charges against her and will be sentenced June 28 in Eaton County Circuit Court.
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